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Maribor
The Kingdom of Maribor is one of the four Northern Kingdoms, consisting of the entire west coast north of the Bloodwater River and stretching from the foothills of the Iron Mountains in the east to the Frostfang Mountains in the north. Named for the ancient forest that once blanketed the entire region, Maribor is characterised by its temperate climate spare the freezing moors of Wraithmarsh, extensive biodiversity, and widespread evidence of earlier civilisations hidden within its many forests. The Kingdom is governed from the capital of Bowerstone on the shores of Bower Lake, and includes the settlements of Ashford, Mistwatch, Oakvale and Brightwall as well as the independent cities of Lionsgate and Kraghammer, from whom it derives enormous profits. History After the Calamity The Dawn Age Before the reemergence of humans from across the Lucidian Sea from Vasselheim, the land north of the Bloodwater was completely blanketed by dense woodland. During this time Maribor was heavily populated by a caste of Elves known as the Nepharim, who held a deep spiritual connection to forest and created a pact with the god S'lve to maintain the balance of nature in return for his patronage, known as the Green Pact. The Nepharim lived in small settlements in the trunks and branches of the ancient oaks that dominated the foliage of the Brightwood, remaining relatively isolated from the outside world. Even in the Dawn Age, before the resurgence of man, the Brightwood was littered with the ancient ruins of a former civilisation from before the Calamity. The Arrival of Humanity When the longships of the first Humans landed on the shores of Albion from across the sea, the mouth of the Bloodwater River was quickly identified as an excellent location for a settlement. Over the following decades the small settlement quickly developed into the largest city on the continent, rivalling those of Wildemount and Exandria despite its youth. Initially this city was known as Emon, but would come to be known as Lionsgate. Emon served as the capital of a vast kingdom that spanned the entire west coast and was expanding its tendrils past the Iron Mountains to the virgin lands of what are now Aedirn and Kaedwen. The Origins of Maribor The Age of the Shroud The Kingdom, its name lost to history, was ruled by a dynasty known as the Baratheons, each monarch more tyrannical, ambitious and insane than the last. During this period the cities of Bowerstone and Mistwatch began to slowly develop, as well as early beginnings of the Brightwall academy. The forests that once blanketed the region soon were chipped away by the axes of enterprising humans, who also established a flourishing trade with the dwarves of Kraghammer. During the Scattered War, significant guerilla warfare took place between the forces of the Baratheons and the native Elves of the ancient and vast forests. The dwarves of Kraghammer were forced to economically support the war effort of the Baratheons. Many of the war’s largest and most significant conflicts took place within the region of Maribor, namely the Sacking of Bowerstone, the Battle of Rookridge, the decisive Battle of the Bloodwater and finally the siege of Emon. The Age of Heroes After the war, the lands north of the Bloodwater were named Maribor and made into a hold of the Northern Empire by the new Sovereign Haldren Lionheart, who made the wounded city of Bowerstone its capital and funded its reconstruction, as well as granting the Nepharim autonomy and free reign over the still vast Brightwood. The Hero’s Guild was founded on the shores of Bower Lake, and the Brightwall academy emerged as one of the foremost centres`q of magical learning on the continent.